Custard pies

Gisslen calls custard pies soft pies: liquid fillings that become firm when their egg content coagulates, baked in a single crust. He includes all pies with large quantities of egg, among them pumpkin and pecan. The American Pie Council groups custard, chess and sugar cream pies in its baked dairy category. The difficulty, in Gisslen’s words, is cooking the crust completely without overcooking the filling. He starts soft pies low in a 425°F to 450°F oven for 10 to 15 minutes to set the crust, then lowers the heat to 325°F to 350°F to avoid curdling, or partly bakes the empty shell first.

The sources measure the setting point differently. Gisslen shakes the pie gently and calls it done when it is no longer liquid, or inserts a knife an inch from the center and looks for a clean blade; the center will still be soft and will finish cooking from its own heat. King Arthur takes its custard pie out when the edges are set and the center is still a bit wobbly, at 170°F to 180°F. For pumpkin pie it looks for a slightly domed, solid edge and a center that jiggles like gelatin, and it attributes cracks to overbaking. LSU AgCenter, applying the USDA’s 160°F standard for eggs, calls for custard pies to reach 160°F in the center.

Starch changes the custard. Gisslen notes that many bakers add a little flour, cornstarch or instant starch so they can use fewer eggs and to reduce separating, or weeping. Cornstarch can settle out of a pumpkin filling before it gelatinizes, leaving a dense layer on the bottom, which instant starch avoids. The crust underneath is at risk: Gisslen recommends mealy dough for custard bottoms, and Milk Street pours custard into a blind-baked shell while the shell is still hot.

Custard pies are perishable. Iowa State Extension reports USDA advice that all egg-rich pies, pumpkin, pecan, custard and meringue among them, be refrigerated after cooling unless served within two hours of baking. It exempts store-bought pies sold unrefrigerated, which contain preservatives, until they are cut. University of Wisconsin Extension extends the rule to any pie with milk or cream in any form, including evaporated and condensed milk and plant-based milks. King Arthur keeps egg and dairy pies in the refrigerator for up to four days, against up to two days at room temperature for fruit pies.